UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC Acquires 290,147 Shares of CME Group Inc. $CME

UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC grew its position in CME Group Inc. (NASDAQ:CME) by 11.9% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,727,809 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 290,147 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC owned approximately 0.76% of CME Group worth $723,660,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Wayfinding Financial LLC acquired a new position in CME Group during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its position in CME Group by 122.2% during the first quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 100 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 55 shares in the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in CME Group by 612.5% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 114 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 98 shares during the last quarter. Alpine Bank Wealth Management bought a new stake in CME Group during the first quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of CME Group in the 1st quarter valued at $32,000. Institutional investors own 87.75% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other CME Group news, Director William R. Shepard acquired 256 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, June 25th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $270.53 per share, for a total transaction of $69,255.68. Following the completion of the purchase, the director owned 258,196 shares in the company, valued at approximately $69,849,763.88. This trade represents a 0.10% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Sunil Cutinho sold 11,896 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $271.47, for a total transaction of $3,229,407.12. Following the transaction, the insider owned 17,440 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,734,436.80. This represents a 40.55% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

CME Group Trading Down 0.4%

NASDAQ:CME opened at $261.53 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $94.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.32, a PEG ratio of 4.75 and a beta of 0.43. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $274.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $270.18. CME Group Inc. has a 52 week low of $212.38 and a 52 week high of $290.79. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.12.

CME Group (NASDAQ:CME) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.91 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $1.69 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.68 billion. CME Group had a net margin of 58.48% and a return on equity of 14.60%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.56 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that CME Group Inc. will post 10.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

CME Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, September 25th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 9th will be issued a dividend of $1.25 per share. This represents a $5.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 9th. CME Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 48.40%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CME has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup increased their price target on CME Group from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 3rd. Barclays set a $298.00 target price on shares of CME Group and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of CME Group from $305.00 to $285.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Monday. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of CME Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Sunday, July 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of CME Group from $283.00 to $296.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and three have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, CME Group currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $260.60.

CME Group Company Profile

CME Group Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates contract markets for the trading of futures and options on futures contracts worldwide. It offers futures and options products based on interest rates, equity indexes, foreign exchange, agricultural commodities, energy, and metals, as well as fixed income and foreign currency trading services.